Helsby Air Crash - early 1950s

[Beemer]

New Member Bassman78 has this request,

"Does anyone remember a plane crash in Manley (nr Helsby) think it was a Westland Wyvern , just missed our school and frightened us all, pilot ejected and landed in Mouldsworth Village Hall playing field about half mile from the site, think it was 1953 or 54, there is no details or mention that I can find in any newspaper or website ....."

Regards Beemer. Admin.

[viscount]

Not an accident that cropped up when researching Merseyside aircraft accidents and incidents for the thread on NWAN. So one I would like to find out more about. I'll ask around the local aviation researchers in the morning, however first I have a book which could well contain an answer. The British Aviation Research Group's 1973 monograph on the Westland Wyvern including individual airframe histories. Bed-time reading tonight and see what I can come up with.

In recent research for the photo thread on RNAS Stretton I did discover that the airfield was home to the servicing 'Air Yard' for the Westland Wyvern, so Royal Navy Wyverns over Cheshire in the early '50s is not a surprise.

As for being frightened by a Western Wyvern going over, I rather gather they made a noise that would put a Piaggio Avanti to shame and one screeching low overhead would have been an alarming event, even under full control of the pilot!

[jetdragon]

There is a record on the net of a Wyvern accident on 7 April 1954 - noted as a "Fire in the air - near Stretton, Lt. Newman ejected at 7000' @200 kts". No serial is quoted.

link

A possibility?

JD

[viscount]

I've independently come up with the same date. About the only Wyvern crash in the BARG book that is not provided with a geographical location - but enough clues (and the details match those provided 'Jet Dragon') to be certain it is the right crash. Now with a firm date, perhaps 'Bassman 78' can revisit the newspaper archives?

The full BARG entry with a few expanded details (about the shortest entry for any of the 127 Wyverns built, although only 87 were production aircraft!):

Serial VZ779 built as the 30th production Wyvern S.4. Following completion at Yeovil, was first flown and then initially stored by Westland's at Merryfield. Delivered to RNAS Stretton on 2nd February 1954 and crashed on a check test-flight, 7th April 1954, just prior to delivery to RNAS Ford (the main operational land base for the type). The pilot, Lt. J.D.Newman, ejecting successfully.

Not bad, a little over an hour from request being posted, to registration, pilot's name, and the date, although no confirmation of the specific location. Well done JD for getting there first.

In a few days time, I'll likely move these posts to the RNAS Stretton thread and weave the information into a post on the 'Liverpool Airport and Region, Aircraft Accidents and Incidents' thread.



For those left wondering, just what is a Westland Wyvern? The Westland Wyvern was quite a 'beast' but suffered problems in its development, being the world's first turbine powered combat aeroplane. Service life was brief (most were retired in 1958) due to the introduction of jet aircraft capable of Carrier operations (Sea Hawk, Sea Venom and later Scimitar), although the type did see action during the Suez Crisis of 1956. Only one complete example survives and can be found in the Fleet Air Arm Museum at RNAS Yeovilton. For more on the type, look it up on Wikipedia.

[sabre]

TEST PILOT BALES OUT IN FIELD Westland Wyvern twin-engined aircraft into Ford’s Field Manley Hall Farm on Tuesday afternoon the test pilot being unhurt - Chester Chronicle 10 April 1954..page 20...Tuesday was the 6th..

[sabre]

Some more info from a meeting held on the 14th April 1954 at Armstrong Siddeley Motors to review the Python position.

Various comments on issues with the Wyvern's Python engine and in particular regarding VZ779 - 

"As a result of a false fire warning which ended in the pilot bailing out and the complete loss of the aircraft we have written to Westland suggesting that the non-resetting type of fire switches used on the aircraft should be replaced by re-setting type similar to the ones used on our engines"

[sabre]

JET TEST PILOT BALES OUT IN FIELD

A Westland Wyvern single seat twin engined jet aircraft crashed into Ford's Field, Manley Hall Farm, on Tuesday afternoon the test pilot being unhurt after baling out over Mouldsworth.

A Frodhsam Police Officer, Constable Penney, who lives at Manley, saw the aircraft flying low and heard the crash some seconds afterwards. As he went to the scene Frodsham Police told the local Fire Bridgade who rushed an engine to Ford's Field.

The plane was from the Royal Naval Air Station at Stretton and is one of Britain's newest. It's pilot found that one of the engines was on fire, while nearing Mouldsworth, and although he extinguished the blaze the engine would not re-start. The pilot jumped and landed in Harvey's Field at Mouldsworth while the 'plane was a total wreck after crashing at Manley.

Cheshire Chronicle 10 April 1954 p20

[viscount]

Excellent research find there 'Sabre' and adds considerably to the record and ties together the information on earlier posts nicely.

Thank you.

[sabre]

As a postscript to the numerous photos of aircraft at Stretton awaiting scrapping the Lt Commander in charge of getting rid of scrap metal and materials there got into a bit of trouble in 1955 arising from the disposal of some of the surplus aircraft.

These were four Royal Navy Dominies (aka DH Rapide) RN Dominie which had so seriously deteriorated that it was decided that they should be reduced to spares, produce and struck off charge. The Lt Commander was then approached by another officer serving at Stretton, who wanted to purchase the aircraft for himself. However that wasn't allowed though a sale to a civilian would be permitted.

The 2nd officer subsequently approached  the Lt Commander again saying that a civilian from Swansea was willing to buy the them all for £10 (about £3,000 in 2023 money) which the Lt Commander accepted.

The Lt Commander should have confirmed that the aircraft had been reduced to spares/produce as agreed and should also have sought tenders for their disposal rather than just accept the £10.

By the time this error was discovered two of the Dominies were dismantled by the Swansea gentleman; I wonder whether they ever flew again......

[viscount]

While hunting around 'google' found this site and thread:

www.peakdistrictaircrashes.co.uk/crash_sites/projects/supermarine-attacker-wa535-winwick/

As the url states, the subject of the thread is a Supermarine Attacker FB.1 WA535 of 767 Sqdn Fleet Air Arm, which took off from RNAS Stretton on 5th December 1953 and fatally crashed near Winwick, Warrington.


Further to 'Sabres' post above, I can recall Phil Butler telling a remarkably similar tale relating to Federated Fruit at Liverpool acquiring Dragon Rapide aircraft from Royal Navy Air Yard, Stretton in a 'cash in hand, never mind the paperwork' purchase in 1955. What is known about the 4 ex-Stretton aircraft appears several posts down in a thread: derbosoft.proboards.com/thread/3394/ in the section on Federated Fruit, with three of the aircraft identified, but only one aspired to a British civil registration and later a French one too.

[woody66]

UK Serials shows that quite a few Wyverns had been sold to British Aluminium Co Warrington as scrap. I wonder if anyone ever photographed these.